Fieldfisher publishes its Construction Review – 2021/2022 as Building Safety Bill set for Royal Assent

The firm's annual review of key case law and regulatory developments in construction sector is released today (28 April), coinciding with the granting of Royal Assent to the UK's much anticipated Building Safety Bill.
 
Today, Fieldfisher's leading construction practice has published its review of key construction industry developments from 2021 and the first quarter of 2022.

In this review, we start by looking at some of the most important cases decided last year, including Downs Road Development LLP v Laxmanbhai Construction Limited (2021), Eco World – Ballymore Embassy Gardens Co Ltd v Dobler UK (2021), and Aviva Investors Ground Rent CP Limited and Aviva Investors Ground Rent Holdco Limited v Shepherd Constructions Limited, a matter in which we acted for Shepherd.

A decision of the higher court is promised this year in the case of Toppan Holdings Ltd & Abbey Healthcare (Mill Hill) Limited v Simply Construct, which we also comment on as being consequential for construction disputes.

We also highlight some of the key issues the sector faces, including construction materials and labour shortages, the hike in fuel prices and the war in Ukraine.

We round off by taking a look at some of the most significant new regulation affecting construction, including new public procurement rules and new restrictions on the use of red diesel in off-road vehicles and machinery. 

We round off by taking a look at some of the most significant new regulation affecting construction, including new public procurement rules and new restrictions on the use of red diesel in off-road vehicles and machinery. And, of course, no update would be complete without consideration of the much anticipated and much debated Building Safety Bill which is expected to receive Royal Assent today (28 April). In the Building Safety Minister's words, the Bill brings "about the biggest changes in building safety legislation in our history". Given that the government's building safety measures have continued to evolve, we have also updated our previous article on building safety.

We hope that there will be something of interest for all readers in our review.

Download a copy of our Construction Review 2021/2022.